Dr Mani Santhana Krishnan, Chair of the Faculty of Old Age Psychiatry at the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said:
“We are excited and welcome the recent news about the Lecanumab trial as a first step towards finding disease modifying treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. We understand the drug still needs regulatory and NICE approval, however, we will begin working with our work with our members to consider the best way to address the practical challenges facing real world memory clinics, should the treatment be approved in UK.
“While it’s vital we move forward with finding treatments for conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease it’s also vital we consider the implications on the NHS. We need to ensure there is sufficient resources and capacity to deliver this and any future new treatment in a timely manner to all patients equally across the country.”
Dr Robert Barber, member of the Faculty of Old Age Psychiatry, said:
“We welcome the Government’s commitment to doubling the funding for research in dementia and we hope this will build a more robust infrastructure for patients to be able to participate in future clinical trials – a crucial step in developing future treatments. In parallel, it is important that memory services are better resourced so we can deliver accurate, timely diagnosis to all patients.”
In 2021 the Royal College of Psychiatrists partnered with Alzheimer’s Research UK to published a report, led by Dr Robert Barber, on the issue.
View the report: ‘Are we ready to deliver disease modifying treatments?’ Old Age Psychiatrists’ views on diagnosing and treating Alzheimer’s disease before dementia.
For further information, please contact:
- Email: press@rcpsych.ac.uk
- Twitter: @rcpsych
- Out-of-hours contact number: 07860 755896